Terror and the power of persuasion

This was published 7 years ago

Terror and the power of persuasion

LAST year when the US killed the infamous Yemeni preacher Anwar al-Awlaki they did not do it because he was planning on committing terrorist acts, but because he had become a master at convincing other people to do so.

If the men centered around the Al-Furqan Islamic Information Centre in Melbourne have done anything wrong - thus far only one man is expected to be charged - it is likely police and ASIO believe they were doing similar.

Al-Furqan - the name refers to a chapter of the Quran - is one of countless small community schools around Australia that provide Australia's hundreds of thousands of Muslims Arabic lessons and instruction in the Quran.

They are an essential part of the Islamic faith and are a positive influence in the Australian community.

But, if police are correct, what is different about Al-Furqan is that it was pursuing an offshoot of Sunni Islam - the religion's most populist branch - known in the West as salafi jihadism.


Salafism takes a puritanical view of Islam and since the 1990s some adherents have developed a desire to violently resist what they see as European domination. Osama Bin Laden is the most obvious example of a salafist jihadi.

Based upon the materials the Al-Furqan website and its Facebook page link to, at least some at the centre do seem to share such views, though whether or not they sought to act on them or encourage others remains to be seen.

The Al-Furqan website includes links to a series of salafist-influenced publications, including a British e-book called The Secret World.

After discussing how the West invaded and colonised the Middle East the book states: "People have to take it upon themselves to change the situation. This will mean that they will have to make sacrifices. They may have to sacrifice their way of life, their careers, their reputation and perhaps their lives."

Elsewhere the websites links to a French television documentary about Ansar al Sharia, a youth group created by al Qaeda's branch in Yemen, stories about Islamists in Mali and dozens others.

A recent newsletter released by the centre also referred to the oppression of Islamic fighters across the world

"There is open war and conspiracy by the tyrants of the East and West against them in Iraq, Afghanistan , Somalia and the Caucasus in order to snuff out the flame of Jihad that our brothers have ignited," the newsletter states.


Their website also includes a piece by Anwar al Awlaki about the need to establish a global Islamic caliphate.

Al Awlaki was killed in a US drone strike in September last year and was a member of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. US authorities have alleged he was responsible for radicalising the Fort Hood shooter, Major Nidal Hassan, and the so-called underwear bomber, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab.

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